Analysis: Analyzing An Ad

By Author: Amandda
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In the brief space of three chapters on advertising, we have been able to touch on only a few of the questions that could be asked in a thorough analysis of an ad. Here we provide some of the other questions a person intent Tag Heuer Replica on critically analyzing an ad might ask.

What Type of Ad Is It?
1. Public service announcement (PSA)?
2. Advertising an idea?
3. Advertising a service?
4. Ad designed to engender goodwill?
5. Political ad?
6. Ad for a product?

If the Ad Is a PSA
1. Did it appear in a space or time when it was likely to reach its intended audience?
2. Was it sponsored by a nonpartisan source?
3. Why was it aired or printed? What distinguishes it from PSAs rejected by this media outlet?

If the Ad Is an Idea Ad (pro-life or pro-choice, for example)
1. Who is the sponsor?
2. Did the sponsor incorporate for the purpose of sponsoring this campaign or have an identity independent of the campaign?
3. Why sponsor this ad? How does this ad serve the sponsor's ...
... self-interest?
4. Did the sponsor pay to air or place the ad?
5. How is the idea particularized or made concrete in the ad?
6. What is the intended audience of the ad? What cues in the copy or visuals reveal the identity of this audience? What does the ad want the audience to do? To think?
7. Does this ad exist to counter other ads or unpaid coverage about opposing ideas? If so, how successful is it in accomplishing this objective?

If the Ad Advertises a Service Rather Than a Product (for example, travel on a certain airline)
1. How is the service made concrete in the ad?
2. What is the intended audience for the service? How did the ad reveal the identity of its intended audience? What techniques did the ad use to increase the audience's desire for its service? What attempts were made to convert this wanting to a need?

If the Ad Is a Goodwill Ad
1. Is there a problem with the image or product that the ad is trying to overcome?
If so, what techniques are used to overcome the problem?
2. By what channels did the problem come to public attention?
3. Does the ad explicitly identify the problem it is trying to overcome? If so, did the ad inadvertently make you aware of a problem you were not aware of before?
4. What if anything is the relationship between the product manufactured by the sponsor and the content of this ad (such as an ecology ad sponsored by an oil company) ? If the relationship is nonexistent or minimal, does the sponsor provide a rationale for the existence of the ad in the ad itself?

If the Ad Is a Political Ad
1. Is it sponsored by a committee associated with or dissociated from a candidate by a political party?
2. Is it an attack ad or an affirming ad (attacking an opponent or supporting the candidate)?
3. Does the ad identify the party of the candidate? Why or why not?
4. Does the ad make explicit appeals to get you to register? to vote?
5. How long is the ad? Is it a "lift" taken from a longer ad? If so, what, if anything, is lost in the shorter version?
6. Is the ad consistent with unpaid coverage of the candidate? Has the ad incorporated news like material about the candidate actual news footage of the candidate?
7. Did the ad appear adjacent to content with which it was compatible?
8. Did the ad employ a no-tag tag? If so, what Tag Heuer Replica Watches was the tag and how effective was it? If not, what form of disclosure was employed to reveal the sponsorship of the ad?
9. What is the audience for which the ad is intended? How is the audience mirrored in the ad?

If the Ad Is a Product Ad
1. Who manufactures the product? Can you learn the identity of the manufacturer from the ad? If so, how? If not, what strategic purpose is served by the absence of an identifiable manufacturer in the ad?
2. Is the trademark for the product used in the ad? Is it central to the ad? What does the trademark tell you about the product? How is the trademark integrated into the ad?
3. What is the unique selling point in this ad?
4. What are the redundant elements in the ad? Is this redundancy productive?
5. Is the product shown in the ad? Is it focal to the ad? What is being done with or to the product in the ad? What is this attempting to tell you about the product?